This article was originally published in The Irish At Home and Abroad journal of Irish genealogy and heritage (volume 2 #4, 1994/1995). Published four times yearly.
Colonial Scots-Irish Immigrants: The Irish Records - Wills and Administrations
By Kyle J. Betit
Prior to 1858, wills and administrations were recorded by the Church of Ireland diocesan courts (or by the Prerogative Court of Armagh). However, the average Scots-Irish tenant did not have a will or administration recorded. Usually only more prominent residents had such documents.
The pre-1858 wills and administrations were destroyed in 1922, although most of the indexes survived. There were also many abstracts made of the wills and administrations prior to 1922. The FHL has microfilm copies of the surviving indexes and abstracts.
The PRONI and the National Archives both have collected copies of many wills and administrations since 1922. There are card indexes to the collections of both repositories; the indexes are available on microfilm through the FHL. For more information, see David E. Rencher's article, "Pre-1858 Wills and Administrations," The Irish At Home and Abroad 2 (1994/95): 107-112.
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